Metal ball grinding machine



May 19, 1931. MMNTYRE 1,805,878

METAL BALL GRINDING MACHINE Filed 001;. 12. 1 29 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 May 19, 1931-. J. J. M INTYRE I METAL BALL GRINDING MACHINE Filed Oct. 12, 1929 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 W fi //v 1/5/8 To)? lustrated and 7 1,527,808 granted to me February 192a.

lookin down on the plane indicated b Fatented Ma 19, 1931 Jenn a. Mciirrvnn, or HARTFORD, Corinne-ricer a t nsel BALL e n inite iancnnvn Application filed Gctoccr 153, 1929. Serial nmsaaaaz;

is designed to receive roughly formed metallic balls and grind them to approximately finished size. 'A machine of this type is i ldescribed in Patent llo.

. The object of the present invention is to simplify the constructlon and increase the eiiiciency ofthe prior machine, whereby the power required for operationis reduced, the

life ofthe elements is lengthened, and the output is increased.

Broadly, this is attained by provic'ing a circular metallic bedthat'is slowly rota-tea on one aXis and an annular abrasive platen that is rapidly rotated in the same directi action of the rapidly rotated eccentically mounted abrasive platen. r v

Fig. 1 shows a vertlcal section of the nachine. Fig. 2' 1s a plan. Fig. 31s a section the dotted line 3--3 on Fig. l; Fig. 4 is adiagraniniatic View enlarger scale of the bed and" platen. Fig. 5 is a'detail section on line 5 onFigAc. I g

The machine has asupporting frame 1, on

top of which is an annulartrack 2. Re-

tatably mounted"onthistraclris a disk 3 I which is attached to the upper end ofa vertl'cal shaft althat 1s supported by bear1ngs5 at the upper part of the fraine and berm-111,53; 6

at the lower part of theframe. This shaft has a worm wheel 7 which is engaged by a worm 8 on a horizontal shaft 9 that has a pulley 10 adapted to be belted to any con venient source of powen Attached to the top of the disk 3 a bed 11 that is desirablyinade of cast iron. The upper face of this bed provided with a spiral ball carrying groove 12. The inner Wall 13 of the inner coil of this groove is concentric with 'theaxis of the bedfFigj l, and

the outer coil 14: of the groove also concentric with the axis of the bed, Fig. i, and

nis invention relates tof'a'inachinewhich platen, which, as the balls coine within the sphere of action of the platen, advances the slightly deeper than the rest of the groove,

Fig.5. At the beginning of the inner end of the grooveis a wedge 34.

'- cAn annular grinding platen l5, which'maybe i'OIlllQflOfBIHGIY, carborundum or a slml a lar abrasive material, is fastened to the run- 'd'erside of flange 16011 the hub 17 which is secured to the lo-werend of a vertical shaft 18 that at its upper end has a pulley19. f

shaft is supported "so that it in'ayhave -00 'lh' a .v rtical movement, by bearings 20 in the. bracket .ZIl'that is mounted on the front of a column 22. Theupper, bearing"isthreaded at its lower end, and threaded on thisv is a sleeve 28 provided with radial pins 24 by Iineans of which the'sleev'e may be turned. At

the lower end of the sleeve is a fiangef25 on which-rests a'zcollar. 26 that is secured to the shaft. By screwing the sleeve up and down the shaft may be raised and lowered 'ior ad--" justing the distancebetwen, the working" faces of the grinding platen and the grooved bed." The aXes'of the platenand bed irreccentric, and the platen is designed to be rotat-ed in one directionat high speed, for ex- 7;

arnple approximately one-thousand RIP.

v. 'nile'tlie bed is designed to be rotated in the.

example live R. Ma 3 The ball blanks. are deoosited in a ho )ner ,4, J n J. 2! located on the top or the name and drop san'ie direction at a'inuoh lower speed, for

successivelythrough a spout28 into the innermost coll of the spiral groove in the bed. 3

Loosely supportedby and rotated with the plat-en is a plate 29 which is designed to l prevent the balls from jumping out of the groove in the bed. Thisplate is fastened to the lowerend of rods 30 which are loosely retained by the flange 16 and are connected at their upper ends with a ring 31. r The bed is rotated very slowly beneath the hopper feed spout and carries the balls which I drop into t of the rapidly rotating annular grinding balls along the groove and at the same time effectively abrades them. As the axes of the bed and the platen are eccentric, the platen rotates on anarc from lnsideto outacross ne groove, beneath the under face' I the path of the balls carried by the groove in the bed at one locality, and on an are from outside to in across the path of the balls in the groove at another locality. By this means the balls are subjected to the abrasive action of the grinding platen and adhesive rubbing of the Walls of the bed groove, many times in the courseof their travel from endto end of the groove, and are reduced to nearly the finished size. After the balls have been carried completely through the groove they are ejected therefrom by the finger 32. A guard ring 33 is arranged about the bed'to retain the balls in the outside coil of the groove until they reach the desired delivery location. is the relation of the groove to platen is constantly changing", owing to the eccentricity of the platen and difference in speeds of rotation, the working face of the platen does not become grooved, but Wears down" smoothly, whichensures'a uniform accuracy of grinding of the balls.

The invention claimed is:

1. A, ball grinding machine comprising a rotatory metallic bed having a spiral groove in its face, mechanism for slowly rotatingsaid bed, means for feeding balls into the inner end of said groove, means for directing balls out of the outer end of said groove, a rotatory abrasive platen capable of vertical i'novement toward the bed, the anis of said platen being eccentric with relation to the axis of the bed, and mechanism for rapidly rotating said platen in the same direction as the rotation of the bed,

2. A ball grinding" machine comprising a rotatory bed having a spiral groove in its up perv face, mechanism for slowly rot Zingsaid bed, means for feeding balls into the inner end of said groove, means for retaining balls in said groove, means for dir ting balls out of the outer end of said groove, a rotatory abrasive platen mounted above and capable of vertical inovei ient toward the bed, the axis of said platen being eccentric with relation to the a of the bed, and mechanism for rapidly rcta ting said platen in the same di rcction as the bed.

JOHN J. 

